I know it shouldn't have scared the heck out of me, but I checked the blog just before bed, in the dark, late at night. The volume was on max because we had been on video conferencing with Mike earlier in the day. The title says it all.

Tom and Tracey, Danica looks so perfect she doesn't even look real. She looks like one of those porcelain dolls that Jane begs for all the time. She is beautiful.

Ellyn said "nanana" last night,... several times. She said it again for Mike this morning. She saw the bunches of bananas as I put them in the basket and started freaking out. Pretty exciting for all of us around here. Her little OT session went very well this morning. She freaked out at first, I think because the room looked way too much like the nursery at church. Yes, we did have to go to this appt. but it looks like they are going to change it to a home visit. So two out of her three appts. will be at home.

Jane knocked a girl over at Tae Kwon Do tonight. The girl was holding the kick pad (it's called something I can't remember) and she kept telling Jane to kick harder. So she did. Kind of funny.

Well it's AI and it has taken me way too long to write this little blog so I will sign out. So good to hear from so many. Treven, fabulous to see you on the blog.

All baby, all power!

Thanks for the conversation Marnster! Liking the nickname!

Everything is going well for us. It snowed this whole weekend then on Monday it rained and now it is freezing over! Kim took some pictures of the apartment so she will post those soon. My classes are going well. I am liking going to school. Kim starts her training for her job next Monday. Her ear is hurting a little now and then. Her tougue is still partly numb, right on the tip. We don't understand still why they numbed her tougue. They said it was to put the breathing tube down easier. We will see I guess. We are hoping to go snowboarding soon. Don't know when we can, but we definitely going to! Our home teachers came over last night and one of them got married like 2 weeks after us. Well they just found out that they are having twins AND she was on birth control. Oh man!

That's all for now! Just going to school and working.

Treven

I love the goofy grin! I just wish I had been there to see it in person. She is truly one of the prettiest babies that I have ever seen (the other prettiest babies include Jane, Morgan, Sadie and Ellyn!)----I just love all of my grandchildren! Danica, however, is probably one of the best babies I have ever seen. For those of you with whom I have not shared this, Lexi made the best comment about this great baby so far. She said that she could guess that in the pre-existence that Danica begged Hayden to be able to come to this family. She promised Hayden, in order to come, that she would be a very quiet baby and not disturb his own personal heaven!!! She is really a great second child!

Not much new here. I'm trying to sort out the drawers in my desk and get rid of all my excess junk. I really am quite a packrat and as such am loosing things all the time. By the way, Adina, the 5 x 7 picture of Taylor is hanging on our wall in the kitchen. I think Kenn replaced an old one in there when we received it and had forgotten that he did it!!! We really are going downhill sometimes. We just need a bit more order in our lives!

I started back with Weight Watchers today. Exercise alone just isn't doing the trick--even though I spend about 2 hours each morning at it!!! I made the 0 point soup for lunch..very good! I also am really enjoying "The March"...I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the Civil War period.

Anyhow, I'd better get back to my drawers!!!

Love you all,

Mom

Mom

Danica 7 week's old!

Danica's goofy grin!

My friend took this when Danica was a day old, she just sent it to me so I thought I would post it.

What I meant to say was that I knew I was born that way; that it was not just an acquired trait. :)

Of school that is!! I just attended the first day of classes here at CSUN and am happy to get going again. I'm not sure what the semester holds for me but I guess I will find out... I don't know exactly how hard it will be with the comprehensive exams and all.
Yep, I do have a place to live rent free with a family in our ward here. They are a very generous family and they have a very large home complete with a tennis court, pool, and the most well manicured gardens and yards I have ever seen... so basically you don't have to feel too sorry for me with Brent leaving me alone here.
Marnie- I will be down in San Diego this week from Wednesday to Sunday morning for the national PT conference. We are staying at the holiday inn select in mission valley. Call me and we can hang out. I'm sure you would really like to stroll the exhibit hall with me at the convention center with all that physical therapy stuff... fun!!! Just kidding. Do you have my cell? 661-210-7002
That's it for now, we have a lot of packing and errands ahead of us but have yet to begin.
Take care all,
Buffy

I knew the lord had a hand in my creation. I'm just so grateful that he is passing it along to my progeny. Thank you, Peter and Anne, for exposing the truth and increasing my testimony.

Love, Dad. Were those Borla exhausts?

That is one awesome ultrasound. It does sound like it has dad's genes. Very cool!
Dave

We just got another ultrasound, this kid must be a Kenn Stinchfield grandchild.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4234102463596322432&q=baby+funny

Well Peter you did almost get me for about 2 seconds...I was thinking, uh oh what did Anne do!? She married a con!! but then I remembered that it was Peter writing this and he wouldn't do anything wrong.

It has been so good to hear from all of you! We have got to get a steady stream of blogs going though. We have like famine then feast over and over again!

Gramma - Hi!

Mom - I am trying to read the Historian when I have time so I can get that back to you! I promise!

Dad - lucky you getting to see all those cars! I missed the auto show down here this year but I can't remember why...anyway, sounds like fun.

Brooke - You have to get a video of the girls doing American Idol auditions...for posterity's sake!

Mike - I will definitely censor myself better about the tv programs...sorry about that!! I will wait at least 48 hours to make a comment on anything.

Adina - I like the creativity of the jumprope in the garage...bonus points to you. And don't feel bad about the volleyball thing, at least you don't get laughed out of the yard when you try to join in on just tossing the volleyball around with your little sisters.

Dave - Good job on the running thing! I know that is really hard (well not personally but from watching) but sounds like you are doing really well keeping on top of it. Good luck with that!

Buffy - Good luck with the end of school!! and congrats on finding a place to stay! Are you going to be down here soon? I think I remember some talk about that? Give me a call and maybe we can have lunch or something.

Brent - You will be a Californian no more pretty soon...how does that feel? Good luck with everything anyway. I have February 20th off but it looks like you will be in WA then so I don't know if I am gonna make it up there to see you before you leave.

Tracey - Sounds like everyone is well there! Thanks for the continual updates! You guys should post some pics of Danica soon if you have them. Babies grow up so fast!

Tom - How far is cleveland from NYC? too far to drive?? let me know, oh yeah and Lost is a re-run this week in case you didn't know.

Anne - How are you feeling? showing at all yet? (disclaimer: I don't know anything about the stages of pregnancy so if that is a stupid question...I apologize)

Peter - I already talked to you above but...hey! zup

Kimmy - "Do you know him? Does he call you at home? Do you have a dorsal fin??!", sorry had a momentary lapse into Ace Ventura...yo Kimmy, what's up?

Treven - How is Bath & Body Works? school? actually I don't think that you have ever blogged on here...it is always Kimmy. So how's about we hear from the Trevster?

So anyway now that I have had my conversations with all of you through the blog I will put in my end...

Things are good here. Just chuggin' along. I get to go see the Ellen show next Tuesday!! I am pretty dang stoked about that. Hopefully it is a good guest and I get some free stuff. That would be awesome. I am going with Matthew, Michelle, and my friend Kat.

That is the news from SD. It is sunny and beautiful outside and the cool weather is slowly departing. Maybe I can wear chanklas (flip flops) again soon!!

--
Marnie

Well, I guess sometimes a person's past catches up with them no matter how hard they try to get away from it. You can't deny who you are I guess. It seemed like everything was going great too. I'm out of school finally with a descent job, a new home, a baby on the way and a new city to explore. But just when we thought everything was going our way.......I'm going to prison. I don't know the exact date, but it is sometime in mid to late March. I'm going with a few others from our ward and we're all preparing 5-10 minute talks. I thought it would be an interesting experience and I always love new experiences like this. They do background checks so we have to commit this far in advance. For those of you who know the story of my arrest by the Fresno State Police as a young buck, you might have been wondering, but I thought I would try and have a little fun with the blog. Anne just rolled her eyes and smiled when I told her my plans. Just another dorky thing about her husband besides thinking that there are only four channels on cable TV: Discovery, TLC, History, and ESPN. I will give you ABC, but that's just because of LOST, which I must agree with all the other shout outs that this last week was a little bland. Happy trails 'till next blog.

Peter

It was nirvana in Portland this weekend. I journeyed, alone, down to the annual Portland Auto Show, wandered the aisles of cars and didn't have to look around me to see if anyone was in trail. I guess this is my get-away time. Mom offered to go and sit and read; umm, I think she found something more productive to do at home and waved goodbye to me as I drove off.

My main goal of this trip was to try to find a yellow, 2006 ZO6 Corvette. Well, to shorten the story, I did and ummmm, ummmm..................it was as beautiful an automobile as I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong, I am very happy with my 2002 but, new is new. I think I spent about 40 minutes going around and around, checking it from every angle and of course, sitting in it. Next goal, drive away in one. That may be after finding one in about four years with low mileage and a price that is more affordable. These go for 75000 plus a 10000 dollar market value mark up by the dealers. Anyway, my goal was met and I have to admit it was a great way to spend my morning.

And, to top that, when I got home, mom let me purchase a Borla tuned exhaust for my car for my birthday present. Pretty bold of mom; but, so supportive in my hobbies. Could it be that she is bucking for blue walls in her kitchen? And, beige ones in her bedroom? :) I think so!

I have to be honest that ever since I viewed the walls at Dick and Martha's home and the ones in David and Adina's.........I'm sold on the idea. Not sold on having to do it, but sold on having it done.

Oh, I have to get off the computer as I was just called to breakfast...and being late in this home could buy me a week of making my own breakfast.

Love you all. Dad

Just got home from dinner and games with a family in the ward with kids the same age as ours. He is a chiropractor - nice family. They moved in just weeks after us.

Started the morning with volleyball at the church with a few other interested parties. I swear there is this one guy that we play with that must let out a sigh of disappointment when he sees me walk in to play. I always get put on his team and he always ends up jumping in front of me to hit the ball. I guess that gives you some insight into my volleyball talent. I'm no Anne Olsen, that's for sure.

Then Dave and I worked out. That means he went on his 13-miler in Forest Park near Portland and I stayed home and jumped-rope for 30 minutes in the garage while the kids watched a movie. Yes, my workout is not so glamorous, but I have to improvise with four kids. I do get out and run whenever I can. Anyway - Dave came home like four hours later, totally muddy and beat. It was a trail run, and more strenuous than anticipated. It looks like he will run the Yakima marathon in April - it ends in Selah, where Brian & Paige live.

Church is early, and it's late, so buenos noches.

Adina

Get the defibrillator out, the Blog is dying again!!!!!!

Hey Everyone,

Well I am officially done with Sport Chalet as of 5 pm today. It is weird to not have keys to bring home and not have to go back to that store. Anyways we have great news that Buffy and I found a place for her to live with someone in the ward while I am in Portland (until she graduates). We just did not want to have her live in such a large place and the lack of rent will definately be nice. I start Gap on Monday, in Camirillo, here in L.A. for a period of three weeks. On the 18th of Feb (Happy Birthday Kim), I ship out for Vancouver and begin at training at another store in Woodburn, OR for one week. After that week I get to start at my own store and will be there for one week. The week of 3/6 - 3/11 I will get to have one week off to go back to L.A. to pack up the house and move the stuff up to Vancouver to get it in the Storage. I am excited for the oppourtunities that I will get to have and the ability to get into a new job. I will definately miss my wife for the few months, but we know it is very temporary. She graduates on MAy 31st and then will be up in Vancouver after that. I hope that updates everyone. Love you all.

Brent

Duck Hunt 1945 (Click "Play this Game") I don't know if it will work on Macs. Make sure you use cover (up and down arrows) and reload (CTRL) and mouse to aim.

BTW, here is the proper order to watch the Horatio Hornblower DVDs for those interested:

Duel (first one)

Fire Ship

Wrong War

Duchess and the Devil

Mutiny

Retribution

Loyalty

Duty (last one)

It is so fun to read everyone's blogs. I have attempted a few times to get on and post but the lack of anything interesting to write about deterred me.

Anne, I am so sorry that I didn't at least get on and tell you how much we loved your pictures. I showed the girls and my mom and Meags and we were all so excited for you. I should have said something sooner.

I am with everyone else in regards to the disappointing Lost episode. Good thing American Idol has started or my Wed. night would have been totally blown. Did I mention I had nothing exciting to write about? I swear I watched more commercials than show. Marnie, I also wondered about John.

Nothing too exciting with us. Ellyn is now scheduled for home visits with her PT, OT, and Educational Therapists. I'm so happy they are all coming to the house. That will be good for her. Sadie and Jane and I have really enjoyed watching A.I. The girls tryout for me on every commerical. Too funny. Jane started Tae Kwon Do last week and really likes it. Ellyn has an ear infection. Her ear drum has burst twice. Sadie is begging me to show her the princesses (LDS Bridal. com). We can not wait for Mike to get here. We are counting the days- literally.
We love you all. love, Brooke

Well I could waste time with excuses things like having family visit, having a newborn, having a three year old who hogs the computer all day, etc. but I’ll just say “Hey, at least I am blogging now.” Like Tom said, things here are good. We are having a very spring like January and it delights me to no end. We have been able to get out and go for walks and it has been sunny at least every other day for the past few weeks. It’s awesome! People said that last two winters were particularly bad and I am now inclined to believe them since this one isn’t so bad. There is snow now and it’s quite cold right but still livable. Today we took the car into the auto shop down the street and I was able to walk home with Danica in the stroller and Hayden just loving running everywhere. We had on hats and gloves but in past years that wouldn’t have been possible in January!

Hayden still cracks me up every day with the funny things he says. I wish we had a tape recorder running all the time because I always forget the things he has said. I will try to remember and right some soon. Tom had a basketball game tonight, he is playing on the Lakewood ward team with Dennis Debaltzo. They did really well but lost by three points. Hayden had a blast running around with the other kids. He has really become very social and out going. Today we went to the Children’s Museum and he started talking to other people while we were in the parking lot and he never stopped talking. He would just go up to other adults and kids at the museum and start telling them about his life or about what he was playing with, etc. It actually got embarrassing because he just kept going and going… He still loves his “Danca” and has to play with her every time she is awake, it’s very cute.

Danica is doing really well. She is as sweet as can be and still so mild tempered. She finally smiled for the first time the other day. Most of the time she just sits around looking content and not exactly smiling but definitely happy. She is so cute and fun, I’m waiting for an email with some cute pictures we took recently and then I will post them.

It was so nice to have Barb come to visit. Brooke thanks for staying with Gramma so that Barb could come. We really got the good end of that trade situation since we don’t have to do anything! It was so fun to watch Hayden with his grandma and to see him building memories. He has a such a good memory for things that he loves to remind me of all the things that he did with his Grandma Barb, it’s really cute. And it was so nice for me to have the company and the extra hands so I could do those really hard tasks like shower! It’s amazing how you just take things like that for granted! Barb thanks again! Brooke our prayers are with you and little Ellyn, keep us posted.

Well, I have a million things to do and only a few minutes before Danica wakes up to eat and then hopefully I can go to bed! It’s great to see all the bloggs. Marnie, thanks for the insight on Lost, I had forgotten to watch for thsoe little hints. Tom and I were discussing that the drought in bloggs comes from the fact that so many of you live near each other now that you don’t have to post anything since you can just talk. But, please don’t forget the rest of us and we will in turn remember to keep you informed! Anne, I know it doesn’t mean as much after the fact but if I had been able to post sooner I definitely wanted to tell you how much fun I think those ultrasound pictures are. I am sure I remember better than anyone how exciting it is to really see the baby and to know how real it is! It's great your doctor does those. As I am sure you have figured out, the pregnant mom has the ablity to see the baby so clearly when everyone else looks at the picture and says “what is that?” If you decide to scrapbook the ultrasound get a color copy made of it because the ultrasound itself is not acid free. Congrats on approaching the second trimester! I can’t believe time is going so fast (well for me at least since I am not the pregnant one!) If you don’t already have it you should get the book “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.” It’s great. Okay, Danica is waking up, I took to long.

Have a great day all!

Tracey

OK - it will be more than two cents, but oh well...

Tom- I feel the same way about Lost. Whenever they decide to show a new espisode, I watch and walk away completely frustrated. Don't get me wrong - I STILL watch it, but I think I have forgotten so many important details...if they could just answer a few of my questions...

Mike- also a fan of The Killers. How long has Flowers been Mormon? I just read an interview with them in SPIN and he sounded anything but. Ah well - still great music. We are real excited for your visit and hope to hang out as much as possible. I know you'll be juggling families a bit, but we're looking forward to seeing you. And seeing that huge grin on Brooke's face. :)

Anne- I'm sorry that we didn't blog or call when you posted the pictures. We did comment on them and talk about you guys, so you were in our thoughts - but we should have let you know. Thank you for posting them - so glad your first visit went well. And the V-ball opportunity sounds great...

Marnie- Parker is in love with the gift! Let's just say...he hasn't parted with them since they came out of the box. Not sure if you wanted everyone to know what you got him - since you are doing similar for other neices/nephews. But thank you!

Kim- glad to hear you are doing well after going under the knife. Keep us posted on all that stuff!

Brent- share your timeline with us all! Mid-Feb, right?

Currently reading The Historian - first book I have ever read about Dracula. Anyway - this is so not me - but it freaks me out. Last night Dave was out late playing basketball, and I couldn't even pick up the book. A good read so far, though.

Got to go VTing. Love you all and love the blogs!

Adina

Hey to let you all know, I just found out that I was having surgery on tuesday and I have been so busy since then. The surgery went well. I am in spanish now trying to hold myself together to take a test. Anyway, love you all!

Kim

Marnie, please postpone all comments about any TV show until at least 48 hours after US showtime. I had to skip half your blog:) I will watch that new episode tonight.

I truly believe all-Mac is a wise decision. The whole apple thing is much more suited to 95% of computer users in America. Now with the 360 and high definition, there is little reason to keep a PC around, even for games. Unless your me:) Seriously, there are no high end simulations that work well on a mac, and me love some good simulations. But there is not one of you that needs a PC. Macs sure are not cheap though.

2 weeks until I get to go home for a while. Of course I am very excited. I am trying to stay very busy to keep my mind off it.

As for my latest recommendations:

1. Battlestar Galactica. Yes, I am mentioning this again, but it is that good. Rivals Star Wars for sci-fi excellence. Again, not for kids. You can't catch this one mid-way though, you should start with the first season DVDs, starting with the mini-series (the first DVD in the Season 1 pack). They are currently on the 13th episode of the second season.

2. Horatio Hornblower. An A&E DVD series I found at the library. Unbelieveably good old British navy stuff. It caught my eye because one of the actors is the new Apollo in Battlestar. Better than Master and Commander. There are 8 episodes, first one is called "The Duel"

3. The Lincon Lawyer. By Michael Connelly. Great Grisham style legal suspense. Many of his books are good, and receive great reviews from all sources.

4. The March. By E.L. Doctorow. We gave Mom this for Christmas. I just started it and it is very good so far, and I picked it up based on many trustworthy suggestions.

5. The Killers. I am sure I am late to the party on this one, but I really like this band. Yes, I know the dude is Mormon now. He even looks like a good Mormon kid in the concert show I saw on tv here. His lyrics contradict that at times however.

6. The Jim Rome Show. www.jimrome.com You are missing out if you haven't given this guy a chance to enlighten your life. He takes some time to get used to, but he is hands down the best radio show on the dial. And, he is on Portland sports radio. Otherwise, his podcasts are available (for a monthly fee), which is the way I listen here. He also has an ESPN show called "Rome is Burning" but I do not like it as much because he restrains himself too much on TV. He might be going to Sirius radio next year.

7. Ricky Gervais Show. Podcast here. Free. This is the boss in the British version of The Office and the producer of the American version. Pretty funny stuff, if you get past the fairly thick accents.

8. Garmin Forerunner GPS. I got one for Brooke for Christmas. I have one myself. I am sure Dave has something like it. It gets me out the door and on the road every day. I guess it is the gadget hound in me. It truly makes me work as hard as any training partner.

Nothing new on this front. I finally got in contact with the brigade I am going to. They are still at Fort Lewis; they don't move to Germany until the summer. It seems like a very good unit, and I am very excited to go up and meet some people while I am there next month. And it looks like Brooke will have a sponsor to contact very soon. That will be very nice.

We have no water this morning. Not the way to start the day, especially after a sweaty run. Gross. But I better get changed and off to the "penalty box", as we so fondly call the Ops pit.

Mike

Tom, the all mac thing...do it. I did and I really don't have problems at all. I love it. I don't play games at all though so that could be a reason to retain a PC. Anyway, thought I would give my two cents on that...

--
Marnie

Well I would have posted earlier but when I posted pictures on the blog and only got a phone call from mom and dad, I was a little bummed and decided to wait and see if anyone said anything. Anyways, I am over it and am in my 13th week. I am doing well except that I am still extremely tired and even though I love sleep, I have found myself at night not wanting to go to sleep because that means the next day has to come.

I got an assistant coaching position at the Club Idaho Volleyball Club here in Eagle. I will be helping out with the 16 Gold team which is going to be pretty fun. I can't wait to get back into the gym. Even though I won't be playing, especially being pregnant, it will be good to have some involvement with volleyball again. Plus the tourneys for the girls are all in SLC(yeah sucky to have to drive there every tourney...and I thought driving to LA for every tourney sucked) so I will be able to see my teammates from UVSC more often. Exciting to be able to see them again. It is weird to not really have friends here except for those I see at work and church but I am getting better and am loving Boise more and more.

School has gone well and I have found out that I did not gain residency and since we don't want to have to pay the extra 3700 dollars for nonresident fees, I have decided to take 6 units now, 6 units in the summer, and 6-7 units in the fall. By next December I should have residency and will go full time until I finish which should be too long after that happens. I know it is extended it out a little longer but we can't afford to pay non resident fees at the moment. Anyways, BSU has been good however I am getting frustrated with my advisor in that he is never and i mean never reachable, and he doesnt have his office hours posted anywhere so I never know when he is going to be in his office.

Work is going well. Starting next week I will rarely have to close which I have been doing for the whole time really I have been working. I am so happy because I will be able to spend time with Peter after we both get off of work rather than going to work when he gets off work and not seeing him until 10:30 or 11pm. But I am getting good hours and it is nice to have the extra money.

Anyways, I should get going. I am hungry and need lunch. Hope to hear from you all soon.

Love,

Anne

Wow Tom, I guess you jump started the blog. I was planning on posting today if no one else had. I love you Parker but I just couldn't stand seeing the same birthday wish over and over again...

So about Lost...I would agree with you Tom that is was a little dull last night. As I was watching it I was saying to my friends that I knew that people would be complaining about this episode because no big revelations about the island came. But there were some small things that I picked up. What was that whole conversation with Libby and Hurley? There is definitely something more to that; is she an other?? was she really on the plane?? And then the whole Locke being weird about the baptism and hiding the mary statues?? There were some mysteries to be thinking about but it was a character episode. We haven't seen much from Charlie this season and I think the writers needed to give him his dues. Now that I am done rambling on that..I would also have to say that I am stuck on watching The Office and American Idol as well. I haven't watched AI for the past couple of seasons so it is fun to have the time to watch it this season. And The Office continues to have me rolling with laughter at their ridiculous antics.

Mom, calm down. Everything will be alright. I can see how that would be frustrating though. It will be good for you to get out of the house tonight. Glad to hear that Kim is ok (although I had no idea that she was going into surgery in the first place). I am really glad that I have never had problems with my ears (knock on wood).

Things are going well down here. I am just working away and hanging out with friends as much as possible. We are taking our monthly trip up to Disneyland this weekend which should be fun. Nothing too exciting to report. Remus is well and really likes his new sign...for those of you that don't know, Dad bought me a sign like one of those old metal signs from this 50s place up there that is for "Uncle Remus' Syrup". It has a picture of Uncle Remus on it, you know the old black man from Song of the South?, anyway it has his picture holding a can of Uncle Remus' Syrup and the slogan is (this is the best part)"Dis sho' am Good". It is pretty great. I am not sure where I am going to put it yet because, as my friend Michelle says, it is too big for the back window of Remus! So we will see where that ends up.

I hope all is well with everyone! Hope to hear from the rest of you!!

--
Marnie

I think I am just avoiding going down to clean the kitchen as a prelude to the rest of the house but I so enjoyed seeing some new blogs...they are so fun to read ...Tom, I appreciate the spilling out of your thoughts!!! (and David, too!)

I just got a call from Treven that Kim was out of surgery. She had to get tubes put into her right ear (I think I have the right one) as she is continuing to have problems with it. They also removed a lot of scar tissue that developed from her other surgeries. She is fine and they are on their way home from the surgery center.

We have been searching out alternatives for Grandma's care. We probably won't make the change for several months but she is getting more and more confused..and difficult and I anticipate that in a few months it may be risky leaving her alone. There is a pretty nice place close to us..just on the other side of the freeway..that looks promising. It is pretty home-like and personal...it is called a foster adult care center and consists of 6 houses that each house 6 people. Each house has a caretaker that cooks meals and helps the residents out. They each have their own rooms. It is a little more expensive but she would have enough money to carry her through until she is 102...If she lives that long, we would then have to subsidize her or put her on medicaid. We are still checking out a few other places including Ellery's company's place here in Vancouver. In speaking to Ellery, though, I'm not sure I am comfortable with Grandma being in her own apartment trying to function.

I was invited to a Bunco party (all women, so it doesn't matter that Dad doesn't like to play it) tonight which sounds really fun so I'm going to go. It will be nice to get out for something fun.

On Monday night, we went to Parker House ( a very nice restaurant on the Columbia) for Parker's birthday. David and Adina hosted it and it was a great dinner. Parker was the only child there and was VERY well behaved. It is so fun having family near. Grandma made me laugh when she keeps commenting that she was so surprised to see Brooke there because she didn't know that she knew David and Adina. Not to speak of the many, many times we've been here at our house together since she arrived. She is also convinced that this is her house and Dad and I are visiting. Shouldn't irritate me so much but it does. I'm trying to be a little more mature about it but it is unnerving to be given her permission to have some ice cream out of our own freezer.

Well, I'd better face the kitchen. I bought a new little electic gadget on a whim that scrubs grout, sinks etc so I am trying it out today.

Love you all,

Mom

I don't question your desires, Tom, I actually envy them. If I could push a button and go All-Mac, I would do it. From what I understand, there aren't as many issues with crappy slow computers due to who-knows-what. I just bought an HP computer about a year ago and it is supposed to be loaded. However, it can't run stuff that it should easily be able to run. I have recovered it a couple times only to see that nothing helps. Really frustrating because I bought this computer to do things and now it just sits there to check email and do Word documents. My laptop, which is not nearly as beefy, seems to work better, although it isn't strong enough to play any games. So, what I am getting to is that if I had that magic button, I would do it. It is just that that button has a hefty price tag. One question though: Are new releases of games now able to be played on Macs?? Just curious.

Things are going well here in Washougal. I took a trip to Utah last weekend (just Friday and Saturday) for a dental laser course. We have this expensive and very cool laser here in the office that can do some pretty amazing things and I went up there for a meeting of a lot of users...we kind of share all of our experiences and learn more about what we can accomplish with it. Great learning opportunity. That took most of the time, then I visited Adina's brother in Provo and the Lever's (good dental school friends of mine) for a couple of hours before I flew back. Then I had some orthodontic training in Portland on Sunday and Monday. Needless to say, the weekend flew by. Here it is Thursday already...amazing.

Martha, don't feel left out that I didn't come to visit you guys, I will be up there in May hopefully. Oh yeah, I wanted to check and see if there were any open rooms at the Eden Retreat around May 6th. I plan to come up there for the Ogden Marathon on the 6th and would love to be able to stay with you guys. I'll check with you later.

Homerun Brian, you never cease to amaze me with your thoughtfulness for others when your life is so incredibly busy. Thank you so much for the mats, they really look good in the practice. For those that didn't see them yet, he had these custom mats made with my new logo on them for the practice. They're pretty cool!

Our family is doing fine here. Adina keeps us all in line and "remembering" things. There are days, like these last few, where I really think I would be lost if she weren't here. This is officially (for me) BRAIN FART WEEK! Celebrate as you wish.

Dave

Alright, I cannot take it anymore. This blog is on life support. The schicks blog is thriving, living the high life. It could not be healthier. Our blog, not so. Anyway, I thought I would say a few things that are going through my mind. First things first, that was a really crappy and wierd lost. That show is so confusing to me. They can have one show that is unbelievable great, keeps me on the edge of my seat. Then, there is no show for weeks, which is a joke. That is one way to get people to stop watching and just wait for DVD. It is just when you wait for a week or more for an episode and you are so excited for it, then it is a dud, it really hits hard. Anyway, having said that, I am now trying to delete the number of shows that I am watching. It has gotten much too out of hand. Nights go by so fast if I am watching TV so that has to end. Now, I am not making any huge change in my life, I still am going to watch too many shows, but, I am taking steps, baby steps. I will reduce my shows to this, in no partucular order, no, second thought, it is in order.......The Office(by far my favorite, I love to laugh and I have lived this show at Nu Skin), 24(this show is unbelievable, could never happen, but fun), House, Criminal Minds, Lost(falling, could go back up any week), Designing women(not really), American Idol(I am a girl). So, there they are, this list could also include various seinfeld re-runs as those are on all the time. American Idol should really be higher. It is a ncie show because with DVR you can get through a show really fast. Anyway, not that you guys wanted to see that list, but, it is what is on my mind. We are all doing great out here and are enjoying our time just spending time with each other. Being so far away from family makes you appreciate your own. That was one of the ideas of coming to Cleveland, for me at least. So, that is all, I would love to hear from you guys, we will talk to you later. By the way, our PC is slowly bitng the dust, despite what Tracey believes and I am looking to go all Mac. This is a big step, but I think I am prepared to do it. Anyway, just going through my mind.
Tom

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Parker, Happy Birthday to you!! We wish we were there to sing with you and celebrate! We hope you have the best birthday ever! We sent you a little birthday something so check your mailbox in a few days! We love you!

Love,
Uncle Tom, Aunt Tracey, Hayden and Danica

Great game! Hope you all enjoyed it!

Love you all,

Mom

Same Picture without flash 

12 Week Baby Pictures---We don't have a scanner so these are pictures taken of the ultrasound pic---kinda fuzzy 

Same picture--a little better 

...TODAY! Yes, you heard me, the sun is shining. I can hardly believe my eyes. I want to cry. And what' more...it shouldn't rain again for the next 3 days. Unreal. I just had to share that with all I love. The sun. It's shining. :)

Dave is missing it. He is in Utah where it snowed last night. Fortunately, he is at a hotel with treadmills or I fear he would explode. He is aiming for 35 miles a week or something, so running is muy importante. He had a Planes, Trains, & Automobiles's moment last night with Dr. Davis. They go to their room, walked in, and stood staring at the ONE bed in the room. I can just see them looking at the bed, then at eachother. Anyway - they got it straightened out. Dr. Davis said, "I like you, Dave. But I don't like you that much". Funny. Those aren't pillows!!!

Love you all. Off to work on my R.S. lesson.

Adina

So I have a new addiction... I guess it has been quite the fad for a while and I do remember seeing it vaguely at bookstores and such. It is Sudoku. It is such a fun puzzle game! I have been playing it all day at work! You can time yourself but I am just doing them on downtime. I won't try to explain it on here because that would be way too complicated. My friend Kat's boyfriend showed it to me last night. There are a bunch of them at www.websudoku.com. Pretty cool. He explained it to me so I am not sure if the directions on the site explain it well enough but in case you are in need of a cool puzzle to pass the time...these are pretty awesome!

--
Marnie

I had the interview today... well 3 interviews plus a typing test and 10 key test. Anyway! I got the job! I will be getting 6.20/hr for the first 3 months then I can get a higher position. I will be working 12-15 hours which is perfect! And also I get a bunch of free stuff from them and they do this thing where every hour that I work I will get 50 cents extra put into a Bonus Bank thing if I attend to the attendance policy! Then after a year, they give me everything from that bonus bank! Sweet huh? Anyway, it is just a great job that is right here in Rexburg for us to be able to extra money. Treven starts his job on Saturday but I don't start until February 6th!
That is what is going on! Now I have to go see exactly what time LOST is on here! Don't want to miss it. In the words of Marnie, "Happy Lost Day!"

Kim

Hey Kim- My sister just started doing the Melaluca thing from her home and is real excited about it. I guess it is a huge range of stuff that is all organic and non-toxic (cleaning supplies, etc) and it's cheaper than the brands at the grocery store. Anyway, that's so funny.
Buffy

So stupid me, I left around 4:15pm today to get to my 6 o'clock class thinking it was a 5 o'clock class and when I got here there was only one guy sitting outside the room and the room is locked. It was then I realized that my class was actually at 6 o'clock and I was a idiot for leaving at 4:15, an hour too early to leave. But hey I found that BSU has wireless internet, I am able to surf the web and blog to ya'll while I wait for another 50 minutes before class starts which is a class scheduled to go to 9pm. Hopefully since it is the first day, she'll let us out early, but with it being only an 8 week course and meeting only once a week, we may be here until 9pm. I haven't gone to buy the book yet for this class which irritateingly(I don't know if it is a word) costs $160 in itself. It is a stupid computer class that I am required to take for my major and I am frustrated I have to pay so much for an 8 week class's book. Kinda sucks but what can I do.

Anyways, today is the official start of the semester and I have to miss basically all of both of my classes tomorrow because I am headed off to my first appointment at 10:30 which will involve my first ultrasound. Kinda exciting and Peter found out that he can go with me to the appointment which makes me so happy that he will be there for it.

Work has been going well. I worked 36 hours last week, for which I get paid this friday for, so it will nice to have some money to pay off credit cards and such. I begin working 4 nights a week this week and pretty much guess that is how my working life is going to be until I end up quitting which I suppose will be around the end of June so that I can be free to do whatever until the baby is born.

Peter's parents came to visit with our furniture Sunday night and left this morning around 9am. They brought all of our living room furniture so it is nice to finally have some real furniture in our front room. We are always happy to welcome anyone to come and visit. His parent also brought a double bed, mattress and frame, which we plan to put in the 2nd bedroom for any who comes to visit. We love you all and hope to see you soon.

Love,
Anne

Well, school is going well! We made it through the first week without fail. I have a job interview tomorrow for Melaleuca. They are a company that sells cleaning supplies, makeup Everything basically with this special melaleuca oil. Anyway, the only way you can order is through the phone. So I would be taking order over the phone for 6.50 an hour which is pretty good starting pay here in Rexburg. Treven hasn't started at Bath and Body Works yet. He is starting working next week because they had to transfer all of his information to Idaho Falls and it took a while.

By the way for Brooke, Mom and anybody else who is interested, I have a website now for my Mary Kay business so you guys can just go on there and look around and shop there. The website is www.marykay.com/kperry96 . It is an easier way to order it then having to go through me.

That is all that is really going on for us. Except that I went to the doctor last week and had her look at my ear. Now I have to go to an ENT doctor because she said she sees a hole in my eardrum! So I go next Tuesday for that appointment. We will see what happens!

Love you all,
Kim and Treven

Nothing groundbreaking to report, but have really enjoyed reading everyone's blogs...

Today was a fun day. Dave had to work, but the boys got to go see King Kong with PaPa and really loved that. Thanks, PaPa! That left us girls to fend for ourselves, so what did we do...? Why, shopping and lunch, of course! Brooke and I hit some January sales, bought some of the same stuff (we'll be on different continents all too soon), and had lunch at Chevy's. Very fun afternoon. I'll sure miss Brooke when she is travelling the world, but I'm so happy for all of them.

Dave has a new calling...assistant Webelos leader. He'll do a great job. He takes off on Thursday night to go to Utah for some laser training. While there, he'll visit a friend from dental school and also my brother in Provo...and catch a glimpse of his secret girlfriend, Katelyn. :) Then he has his ortho course on Sunday and Monday. Always busy and always working toward making the practice a success.

Marnie -we will look for the package. Thanks! Parker's birthday is Monday. There is a restaurant here in Washougal called Parker House that opened recently - steak and seafood place on the river. Anyway - Parker thinks it is his house, so we are taking him there for dinner. (For those of you joining us, the reservations are for Monday, the 23rd at 6 pm.)

Brent & Buffy - can't wait until you are here so we can play! Congrats on the job - Brooke and I will still like you, even though we can't use your discount. Of course, you could always buy us "gifts", and we can pay you for them! :)

Have a safe trip home, Barb. Give all those Stinchies in Cleveland a big hug for us. Everyone else - be safe and blog away!

Adina

Sadie's is May 28, Hayden and Morgans is December 23, Danica is Dec 12, Buffy's is Feb 26, Peter's is Feb 28 and Treven's is May 27. If I am wrong on any of these please holler. Anne should know more about her due date on Wednesday when she has her first doctor's appointment.

Thanks for posting, Marnie.

Love,

Mom

A little update on me I guess...
Things are going really well. Work is good, a little slow but picking up a bit. I'm not complaining too much. Lost has started up again so I can renew my obsession. We have moved our Lost parties from my friends apartment to the club room at her complex. It is pretty sweet with a big screen and pool tables and a kitchen and stuff. And it doesn't cost anything! You just have to reserve it. So this week we will be having another shindig there for "The Hunting Party" (the next episode). Tonight is the Golden Globes so I think we are going to have a pretty informal watching party for that. The big formal one is only 7 weeks away! My 5th Annual Oscar Party is going to be pretty awesome this year. I think my friend Nicole might come down for a visit and my old roomie Sandy is coming in from Texas around that time too. Lots of fun stuff to look forward to.

I should be seeing Brent and Buffy on Saturday. I am going to take a small jaunt up to Irvine to meet them there for lunch (Lunch is right, right?) 'cause I have to work at the Chalet that night. I think it is pretty funny bytheway that I have to get Brent a discount card for Sport Chalet! Weird! Remus is still running well. No problems, only looks from tourists and questions from strangers on how I like it.

It is good to hear from all of you. I hope Mom is having fun with Tom's family in Ohio. I have heard that babysitting is quite fun in WA while you are gone. Dave and Adina, you should be getting a package soon with Parker's name on it. It is for his birthday. I am not sure when it will be getting there, sometime this week. Speaking of birthdays, I know we already did this but I just want to make sure I have the right birthdays for all the grandkids...

Jane - Aug 14
Sadie - ??? May?
Ellyn - Feb 14
Isaac - Aug 15
Taylor - April 3
Parker - Jan 23
Morgan - Dec 22 or 23
Hayden - Dec 22 or 23
Danica - Dec 12?
Anne & Peter - do you know when you are due?

Yeah and I am really bad on the spouse birthdays too...I know Adina's (Sept 28) and Brooke's (Aug 13), Buffy's is in end of Jan? or end of Feb? 22nd? I always get it mixed up. And I have no idea on Tracey, Peter, or Treven. Sorry!! That info would be much appreciated. Oh and favorite colors and shoe sizes for the kids too...(secret: they will all be getting similar birthday gifts this year from their Aunt Marnie). Thanks!

I hope everyone is well. Love you all!!

--
Marnie

I'm sitting in the alcove at Tom's house looking out at just a little bit of snow on the ground. When I arrived on Thursday, it was a 50 degree high that day with no snow. On Friday, Tracey, Hayden, Danica and I walked down to the park and Hayden had a ball playing with the kids that just got out of school. However, Friday night it started raining and then turned to snow overnight and it is back to typical Cleveland weather. On Friday night we went out to Kirtland to the new Joseph Smith movie...the same one that is showing in Salt Lake City. It is a very good movie...as usual, very well done.

Saturday we went to the zoo...they have several indoor venues...a rain forest which is very well done and then an aquarium and primate exhibit. Then they have a nice cozy bus to drive you around. It's very smart for a zoo in such a cold winter climate. Then we came home to watch the Seahawks game (Yea, Seahawks!) We also watched the New England/Broncos game--not quite as exciting since we didn't have as personal an interest. Yesterday we went to church and then over to the DeBaltzo's for dinner. They are such a fun family to spend time with. We hardley see Hayden at all while we are there since he enjoys the boys so much. We got home at about 1 pm after a rousing game of scrabble...with Tom complaining all the time about our choice of "words".

This morning Tom and Tracey took Danica to get some hip x-rays which are routine since she was breech and was in such an odd position. All is well with her hips. Not sure what we're doing today. Tom has the day off for MLK day.

Brooke and Mike, my heart certainly goes out to you but I feel a very peaceful feeling that everything will work out well and with this additional therapy Ellyn will be able to catch up. You are such conscientious parents to have her checked at this point. I'm afraid I would have waited longer just thinking that she is a late bloomer. Whatever the situation this therapy will help her out immensely starting so early. She is such a cutie...and will be a delight for them to work with.

Brent, I am so excited about your job and that they will let you train in LA. That makes such a significant difference to how long you and Buffy will be separated. We're looking forward, however, to having you around the house for a while. What a treat we have in having so much family close...and the ability to visit those who are far away!!

We need to hear from some of the quiet ones...Kim and Treven..how is school going? Marnie...how is sunny San Diego? Mike...keep us up on the non-happenings or happenings in Korea? of course, Tom and Tracey are a bit behind...but I just gave all their news. Remember, it doesn't need to be earthshattering news to be interesting!!

Thanks to Dave and Adina and Brooke for keeping Dad happy and occupied and watching after Gramma. The first is probably fairly easy but I know well that the other can be a bit difficult and frustrating. I appreciate the opportunity to come out here and to have a break.

Love you all,

Mom

OK, so we have church at 9 in the morning. We've been spoiled with a later time for the two years we've been married. So we were slow going this morning as we got ready for church and without it being said, we were both complaining to each other about how early it is to be up on a Sunday. So we get to the building and we're walking in to the chapel right at 9 o'clock and there are a hand full of people and some microphones set up in the choir section and we look at each other trying to figure out what's going on and I look at this lady and as she's saying it, we realize that it's stake conference and it doesn't start until 10. So we sat in the cushy seats that you have to be way early in order to get and listened to the choir practice.

It really was a good stake conference. I thought I would share a cool story. The theme was strengthening the family. The story goes like this:

A father was sitting down to enjoy reading the Sunday paper when his little boy came to him and asked him to read him a story. The father said he would read it with him a little later after he was done with the paper. The father was hoping that his son would be distracted and he wouldn't have to deal with it. His son came back in a couple of minutes with the same request. The father noticed a magazine that had a picture of the world on it. He ripped out the page and tore it up into a bunch of pieces. He challenged his son to put the world back together with the tape on his desk. The father thought for sure that this would keep his son busy and was proud of his quick thinking. A few minutes later, the son returns the broken world all taped together. The father was amazed at how quick he was able to put it back together and asked his son how he was able to do it. The son replied that it was easy because there was a picture of a home on the backside and once he put the home back together the world took care of itself. The father thought that that was some pretty good advice.

I thought that was a cool story and rings true to me.

Peter

Well we had Ellyn's assessment yesterday and really I don't feel like talking about it but I will give you a brief rundown. She scored an average of 10 mos- 16 mos. development in every category but fine motor. She is borderline in that area for now. I guess this was worse than I had expected and they couldn't tell me one way or the other if this was something she would grow out of with therapy. She will start her program next week. She will be doing physical therapy, speech and cognitive stimulation, and I need to take her in to a pediatric physiatrist or a pediatric orthapedist for her little bow legs because there is a family history. So for the next couple of weeks we will have home visits and then when Ellie turns two next month she will start attending a special therapy center pre-school twice a week for two hours a day. I know it's not the end of the world and it's good we got this started early but I'm sure you all know how you would feel if it was your little one. She is such a beautiful, sweet, loving, happy baby and I want her to grow into a healthy, happy woman, to be able to marry in the temple, be a mom, all that good stuff. I know the Lord has a plan and it could go either way. I just have to be patient and do everything I can to ensure her success. So please keep her in your prayers.

Brent, cograts! Adina and I are debating whether or not we'll still hang out with you. It could swing in your favor if Buffy can get us an Ann Taylor (I don't even know how to spell it) discount and if she gets our scarves done in a reasonable amount of time ;).

Okay, it's bedtime. I love you all. Goodnight.

How's that wagon Mike? I'm with you also. I hope they go all the way. It's too bad that Sean got hurt, but they survived and he'll be back next week. Have you been watching the New England game? It's gotta be horrible to be a New England fan right about now with how many turnovers they've had. Maybe they'll pull through though.

Congrats Brent, we're excited for you. That's great thay you'll be able to stay in L.A. for a little while longer during training. We just got to Boise and I can already feel the pull to Vancouver increasing. But that's definately not a bad thing.

Peter

Brent,

Just wanted to say I never doubted that you could pick this one up and run with it. I see you doing very well up there and I hope it leads to even bigger and better things. Well done bro.

GO HAWKS!

Mike

Hello Everyone,

Yes it is I your long lost blogging brother Brent. I am soory but I just went through a very busy holiday season at Sport Chalet and have had no time ti sit down and blog. Anyways I am sure some of you have heard, but I have given my letter of resignation to Sport Chalet and accepted a job with The Gap working as a Head of Store at the Troutdale loacation accross the river from Washougal. My first day with them will be the 30th due to the signing bonus they gave me to give my notice before I received my Sport CHalet Bonus. I will probably be doing my 5 weeks of Training at s store here in LA to be able to be with Buffy longer. I am very excited to work for this company and the oppourtunities it will bring. And for Adina and Brooke my discount is only for Buffy and I unless it is a "Gift". I was great see all of you that we were able to see in the last month. Congrats again to Tom and Tracey and I hope Danica Patrick, I mean Elizabeth, is doing OK. I love you all and I promise to blog much more.

Love Brent

Since some of you don't read the beecher girls blog (Brooke's family) and Brooke has written some great stuff, she gave me permission to copy what I want onto our blog so we'll have it in our family history...so here goes...excerpts from the last few days:

Tuesday, Jan 9

Let's see, what to tell you all? Remember the little stuff. That is what my life is full of- Ellyn has been re-enrolled in early intervention. She gets reasessed on Friday. She still only says "momma" and spends much of her time in her own little dream world. I have been praying that this is something that she'll grow out of with a little extra help early on. It worries me but what can I do but fast and pray and know that Heavenly Father has a plan for her. She was sick this past week and we spent the whole week glued at the hip. If I set her down she would scream and cry nonstop until I picked her up again. Yes, I felt bad for me, but I felt worse for her. Poor baby, she was so miserable. She's back to her happy, turkey baster totin' self this week and I'm pretty thrilled about that.

We spent the whole weekend playing with Mike's family again. His brother and his wife were in town. We played lots of card games and went bowling and ate lots of food that I hated writing down in my food journal. It has rained 22 out of the last 23 days here and so all activities are indoors. I feel like I'm going a bit crazy. Mom and Meags and I did get out for a little walk a few days ago. I thought that I was going to go insane if Ellyn and I didn't get out of the house. So we went walking along part of the Lewisville River that we had never seen and there were about two dozen salmon trying to jump up the waterfalls. We had so much fun watching them. I frankly just don't know how those little guys are going to make it to spawn. It looked way too hard. This computer is making me type weird, built in tab in a bizarre spot. Well I have to go get Jane from school. I love you all. Keep on bloggin'. Love, Brooke

Jan 10
Okay, I'm back to posting daily. We'll see if I can keep it up. Today I had to take Jane and Ellyn to the Dr.'s. Jane, because she is back to snoring like a chainsaw and Ellyn for her referral to Early Intervention. Sadie had to tag along because mom had a meeting and Meags had Bennett's ballet class. So the two girls are new patients which meant that I had 6 million pages of paperwork to fill out and Ellyn trying to stick the turkey baster in my ear half the time. Jane is reading her book and doing annoying errands for me like getting kleenex for the faucets over Sadie and Ellyn's mouths. Sadie is in a mad search for candy. I keep a few suckers and smarties in my purse for emergency situations and Sadie was relentless. "Mom, I need candy. I will find the candy. Where is the candy? I just want some candy. Mom, let's just have SOME candy." I thought I was going to lose my mind. She found every piece while I am trying to act like a mother with some control. I fooled absolutely noone. Then in the Dr.'s office she is doing the same thing, while I am talking to the Dr. I kept telling her to be quiet and what I really wanted to do was say "Excuse me Dr. will you please step out of the room so I can beat my child without witnesses?" I decided against that.

It is still raining. Mike reported to me last night that the Northwest has made it on to CNN World because of all the rain. I clicked on the weather last night and my old setting came up and it was for Georgia. Seventy three degrees. I wanted to cry. I clicked on Battle Ground's weather- Tuesday-rain, Wednesday-rain, Thursday-showers (what is the difference? I think they just wanted to use their new Thesaurus they got for Christmas), Friday-rain, and so on for the entire 10 day extended forecast. Then mom has the nerve to tell me it hasn't been too bad. Evidently she has not tried to load two grumpy toddlers into a dripping wet shopping cart anytime recently. And she obviously wears her pants too short because I walk around with constant wet rings around the bottom of all my very cute new jeans. I will not comment on that any further however because I am just happy to have finally found a few good pairs that are long enough.

Oh, this brings me to another tragedy in my life. A few weeks ago I discovered I am not 5'10". Okay, truthfully I always knew I was five nine and three quarters but I fudged and said I was 5'10". But...Meagan measured me the other day and I was only 5'9"-barely. I've shrunk. I didn't believe her but the next day when I went in for a Dr. appt. the nurse actually had the nerve to say I was 5'8" and 3/4. I just about burst into tears. I would have given anything to be shorter when I was younger, but now I need that height to be at the right weight. This is tragic, it really is. Okay, now you have heard all you need to from Shallow Hal. I'm going to go study my German until Mike calls. Don't be too impressed I just barely took the seal off the box. Brooke

Jan 12

I have to say that our regular nightly reading of the Book of Mormon was and is amazing. First of all the girls have calmed down during family scripture time 100%. A few months ago when we started reading the actual BoM with them and not just scripture stories I felt like the last thing I was getting was a spiritual experience. Now- knock on wood- they sit or lay quietly for the entire duration. Then one night as I was reading we came to a part that I thought was for sure going over even Janie's head. Jane stopped me and asked "so does that mean...?" She was right on track, she knew exactly what was being said. I was amazed and then she told me "Mom for a little while now I have been praying to Heavenly Father that I would understand the scriptures better and I really have." I think as a parent those are the moments to live for. We tried to decide what we were going to read next and we decided we are going to start all over. We are going to work on Old Testament stories for FHE to go along with what we are studying in Gospel Doctrine. Anyway, that is what our family is doing and I'm not telling you all to brag but as a way of sharing with you what has been an amazing blessing to our family.

So I don't know if I mentioned this, but I am staying at Mike's parents house for the next week and a half with the girls. We are taking care of Grandma Esther (Mike's dad's mom) while my mother in law, Barb, is back in Ohio with Mike's brother Tom and their new baby girl. Did that confuse all of you? It did me. Esther is 95 and she's a funny little lady. Several times a day she tells me that her youngest son had seven kids- that would be Mike's dad. She loves the girls and laughs at their antics all the time. She knows my name but doesn't remember that I'm Mike's wife. I guess she thinks I'm just a girl that brings her loud kids over to play on a regular basis.

Brooke

Also, for you young mothers...or mothers to be, the beechfamilytree blog is having a very interesting discussion on parenting techniques...I wish I'd had such a tool when I was raising all of you!!

So on to my news, Brooke is right on on Esther. I'm not sure she makes the connection with Mike or remembers it when she is told it. When Kenn came home from Mutual on Wednesday night and Brooke was there, she said to me "Kenn hasn't met Brooke, has he?" I reminded her that Brooke had been over multiple times and had been married to Mike for over twelve years....Oh, well! It almost equals when we were out to dinner with Dave and Adina. She leaned over to Kenn and said "See those kids over there? Those are David's kids." as if Kenn didn't know....we were all at the same table. Anyway, I appreciate Brooke more than I can ever express. It is wonderful to be able to come back with Tom, Tracey, Hayden and Danica. Danica is so-o-o-o tiny and such a good baby. Hayden is amazing for a three year old on the X-box....and basically a little Tom! I know I will need breaks during this challenging time of taking care of Gramma! I appreciate Brooke for helping with this one!

I love you all,

Mom

Well last night Treven and I dropped my friend Alli off at the Idaho Falls airport and on the way back we had to stop by his work (Bath and Body Works). Anyways, when we walked in there was a booth with these modest tshirt and long sleeve shirts for like 10 bucks. So I got one! It is wonderful! I looked on the receipt and they had a website. www.downeastbasics.com They have camisoles, longsleeved shirts, 3/4 sleeve shirts, Two different t-shirts, gaucho pants, and skirts. The Long sleeved and 3/4 are 12.99 and the camisole and regular shirts are 9.99 and gaucho and skirts are 16.99. Anyways just had to let all the girls know!

Kim

Hey All,
The secretary for my program came through with the answer quite quickly. I and my fellow classmates will be graduating on Wednesday, May 31st at 6:30 pm. She also said there is no limit for tickets.
Buffy

So Brent and I got back from Washington Sunday night and have gotten back into our LA lives. We now have new upstairs neigbors which could not be any more different from our friends... loud, always home (neither work), have loud heated arguments with fowel language which we get to hear through the walls, use our stiarwell as a storage unit (you get the picture).
This, coupled with the fact that Brent might be getting a job offer soon from GAP make me not want to stay here very long especially by myself.
I am at home cleaning today and just got a call from Brent that his interview with a regional manager for GAP went well and it sounds like a job offer will be coming soon. He had the interview at a swanky hotel lobby on Sunset Blvd and just as Brent sat down in the lobby, in comes Kanye West (sp??) with his body guard. Brent reported that the man is shorter in person.
Anyway, we enjoyed the time spent with everyone this past week in rain soaked WA. We hear it hasn't stopped raining and are a little glad to be able to go back to sunny CA for a while.
For the interrested parties; I have emailed 2 people in my program about graduation dates and number of tickets I get so I will let you know when I find out. Now all I have to do is get through the semester and hopefully find a place to live!
I am already in pre-move mode trying to get rid of excess stuff to donate or get rid of before a possibly fast approaching move. I could have a mini garage sale with what I have already collected but would rather just take it all somewhere. I guess 7 years of marriage results in a lot of stuff.
And for the record... No I did not mean what I said when we awoke January 2nd on our 7th anniversary, I was half awake and just rambling (Brent got a kick out of repeating it to everyone he possibly could think of). I have married the best guy in the world and I love him more today than when we were married and I am so proud of the person he has become.
Oh, and for those of you who know of him, Matt Ellsworth just called us yesterday to let us know that he is officially engaged and planning to marry his fiance in Utah very soon. Of course I had to jokingly ask if it was for real this time but he has never called us before about an engagement so I think it's going to happen.
Well, thats my novel and I'm sticking to it! Take care everyone.
Buffy

It happens like this; I sit down at our desk and open up an internet browser. I start browsing the usual cnn.com, byu.edu, weather.com, then.........I wake up and the speakers are pounding with the sound of ABBA, super trouper to be more exact. It's all I can do to get the picture of those, those, those outfits out of my mind. I think I should just accept the truth for what it is, I'm the one who put the song on and I'm the one dancing like I've got one of those sick outfits on performing before a packed Portland crowd. Ya, I'm a big fan of Mamma Mia. I'de play it at work all day, but no work would get done.

So anyways, I thought I would add a little more than just our new numbers. I'm definately impressed with the packed hot tub. The engineer in me is wondering how much water can possibly be in there with that many people in there. Way cool though!

Brent, I heard it through the grapevine that things have gone well for your interviews. Good luck and I hope things work out.

Mike and Brooke, Anne comes out to the front yard while I'm raking leaves and tells me that we could watch the kids while Brooke is in Korea. I'de love to, but I just don't think you'de want us to leave them alone for a couple of hours while we're both in class or at work. How fun would that be though to have the Stinchfield girls to break in the new home. Just remember everyone, we have an awesome waterpark here in our town for a good summer break.

Tom and Tracey, congrats on the new addition. It's getting more and more real for me that we'll have a little one also. I also love hearing about Hayden's witty comments.

Marnie, I'm way jealous that you were able to go to the Holiday Bowl. What an awesome hookup to get free tickets.

Kim & Treven, I hope to see you guys during one of your many three day weekends during this semester. We would love to have you visit.

Dave & Adina, thanks for hanging with us during our visit. Your kids are awesome and loads of fun to have around.

Well, I'm loving work so far. It is different then my water company job that I've done. This is a consultant firm so there is a lot of work to do and everything needed to be done a week ago. I'm enjoying the fast pace though and project managers have been very helpful in getting me up to speed on the projects. Our home is finally taking shape and feeling more homey. Anne cooked one mean pot roast and potatoes yesterday. Thanks Barb for filling her in on the recipe. My office-mate was pretty jealous of the leftovers I brought for lunch today. I think the last task to be fully functional in the home is to find out how to get a new code for the keypad that opens the garage door opener from the outside. It may be a doosy to figure out.

So all you Stinchfield tech-crazed fanatics, the Boise area has a pretty sweet way of providing internet. It's called "Clearwire". It works just like a cell phone. All you have to do it plug in the reciever so it has power and it recieves the wireless signal from a tower just like cellphones. The cool thing is that as long as the area we travel to has clearwire coverage then we can use it there. So with an inverter in our car, we can surf the net. The company is growing and I suspect will be all over in a few years. The coverage is great here in Boise and the fee is very affordable. Well, I've successfully procrastinated another day of working on my thesis. Today I did actually open it up and review since its been a while.

I should be going now, thanks to all for putting up with us during the holidays. Brent & Buffy, that was the best lasagna I may have ever had and I still can't get that saving ferris song out of my head(it's one awesome song).

Ken & Barb, it's always non-stop fun when we stay at your home.

Everyone that was there for the amazing gumbi fanatics of me, Dave and Anne.....cherish it because I don't think you'll ever see me be able to do that again. Anyways, one of the best New Years parties ever!

O.K., Anne is wondering what I could be writing about with all these questions about how to spell gumbi and all, so I better get going and publish this so I can get some sleep. If it were only this easy to write a thesis..............hmmmm

Peter

Hey everyone,

I thought I would blog our new numbers for our cell phones (no landline-no need for one) and our new address:

Peter (208) 921-8570
Anne (208) 921-8571

13542 W. Meadowdale Dr.
Boise, ID 83713

Love you all,

Anne

Inna Haut Tubb on a cold, wintery night, yeow! 

So I guess I should contribute since pretty much everyone else has. Things are going well down here in the promised land. :) It was a nice 65 degrees this morning at 7:30am as I drove the journey to work. Quite pleasant I must say.

I have fallen back into work this week and have been able to stay quite busy. Falling back into the routine hasn't been to hard to adjust to. One of my really good friends, Derek, is moving home to his parent's house in Tulare, CA this weekend so we are having a little going-away party for him tonight. It should be fun. I think most of the gang from Sport Chalet will be there so hopefully we can all give him a proper farewell.

Last week I got to go to the Holiday Bowl courtesy of my old roommate Kim who is an athletic trainer for the Oregon Ducks football team. It was really really fun and we got awesome seats. We were right above the inzone under the jumbotron in the 7th row. Pretty cool for free tickets. Too bad the Ducks lost. :(

I have been thoroughly enjoying my new slice of heaven (my car). He is wonderful and I love him. It is fun to be driving and have other Mini driver's wave at me just because I am driving a Mini. Kind of a cool camaraderie we got going on there.

Well that is about it from me. Nothing too exciting. Good to hear from you all! I am glad that A&P and K&T are settling in well in their respective Idaho homes. Love you all!

--
Marnie

Well, I figured it is about time for another update from the "Land of the Morning Calm" It doesn't feel so "calm" running that first mile every morning in 0 degrees temps!

Since everyone returned back this week from the half-days, things have been pretty busy playing catch-up. That is fine by me, I really like it when there is a lot to do. The days are definitely going by faster.

It was very nice to see most of you during Christmas. It actually felt like I was a part of the whole thing. I know it probably distracts having the technology there taking up attention, but I appreciate it nonetheless. I really am grateful to Marnie for pretty much running the Christmas Eve A/V for me.

I figured what I will do is bulletize what is going on with me to make it straightforward and not so long winded (edit: oops, it is still long winded but hey, I am alone!):

- I will be home in Vancouver from 9 FEB to 2 MAR. I fly in and out of PDX.

- Brooke is planning on trying to fly MAC out here the end of March as a test run before trying to bring the girls in April. If it does not work out, she will just fly by herself civilian-way and spend about 2 weeks here. I am currently begging for babysitters in case that happens.

- If the MAC thing works out Brooke and the girls will spend most of the summer here. Otherwise, another 2 week trip sometime in June.

- I now have orders for 6 SEP 2006 to the brigade moving to Vilseck, Germany from Fort Lewis this summer. All things can change in the Army, but we really don't want them to this time. Please keep us in your prayers on this one.

- My new favorite television show is Battlestar Galactica, the new one. Hence the title. It is unbelievably well produced. There are many twists on the original series which was most definitely a boyhood obsession of mine. I distinctly remember the Viper and Cylon Raider Mom and Dad brought me when I was recovering from my operation at Seattle Children's hospital. That was a profound moment in my life, and possibly one of the best gifts I have ever received, just because they knew how much I loved the show. I recently found out there were only actually 17 original episodes, one season, before it was cancelled. What a trip, my memory had always been of years of episodes. The new one is now in the middle of its 2nd season and has just signed for 2 more seasons with SciFi channel. Sweet! IMO, It is the best show on TV. But that is coming from me, probably the biggest sci-fi fan in the house. It is definitely not for kids; much more risque than the original. However, it is interesting to see that Glen Larson is a consulting producer and that like the original 1978 series, some Mormon doctrine works it way into the mix. Yes sibs, better than the Office or Lost. I am loving going thorugh the Seinfeld DVDs as well. Thank you Mom, Dad, Dave and Adina! BTW I just exchanged the one duplicate for Season 4 at the PX, which I did not have. On that note, any other good shows out there? I mostly use the new Itunes for the TV shows.

- The XBOX 360 is absolutely my favorite toy ever. It is a joy to play and I cannot wait for what the future holds for games for this thing. Tom and I have had a blast playing cooperatively over Live through one game, and also a few great rounds of deathmatch. It is very smooth play, can't even tell I am halfway around the world! My thumb aches from playing Project Gotham Racing 3 so much, I think my hand ached for months after PGR 2 was released as well.

- It is too cold to bike now (wind chill). So my Saturday exercise consists of long 10-12 mile runs. Obviously my leg is much better. However, I do get shin splints in both legs now, which was never a problem for me for the first 35 years. Bizarre. I would love to do the Marathon with Dave, maybe in the future. I do plan at least running a 1/2 marathon for the Seoul marathon in March.

- I am still reading the Joseph Smith book and am truly enjoying starting over in the Book of Mormon. It really does make a difference when read daily. Nobody can argue that. The problem is I hate "snacking" (15-minutes). It just does very little for me. Luckily, it is easy here to spend 45 minutes to an hour reading every day. That does make a difference. I just wonder how I am going to do that when I get back to the responsibilites of husband and father. It makes it tough. Kind of ironic.

- I am enjoying my job a lot more. My boss is finally seeing what I am about. They are starting to realize they can lay a lot on me. Sounds bad, but in this situation I am grateful for the work.

- On the National Championship: my take is that Vince Young is a stud and that Pete Carroll might be a good "manager", but he is not a good on-the-field football coach. I have watched a lot of games this year and my assessment is that he really lacks good decision making during games. In the Rose Bowl, his biggest error was not keeping the ball on the ground during USCs last drive. Two pass plays when you have arguably the best two running backs in college? And they needed to run the clock down? I actually think it was a good decision he went for it on 4th and 2 even though it didn't work out. The other mistake was obviously the timeout debacle, but the playcalling lost them the game....and Vince Young calmly strolling in to the endzone. It was a blessing to be able to enjoy all of that over here. Thank goodness for that 50 inch TV above my work desk! GO SEAHAWKS! (At least I can say I jumped on that wagon in September, even though I have not been the most loyal Hawk fan during my life)

Now that I have worn you all out with my opinionated ramble, I just want to say I love you all and wish you all a very blessed and happy new year! It should be interesting!

Mike

Hello everyone,

Well we are finally here. We got internet set up today and are finally able to blog to you all. I know it seems like we disappeared off the face of the earth but that is what happens when you are homeless and just move in. We have gotten settled in somewhat after dealing with the gas being turned off because we forgot to call to have it switched over to our name. Let me tell you that was a very cold night. The last few days I have started my search for a job and got one today. I will be working part time at Bed, Bath & Beyond. I have an orientation next week and will be starting immeadiatly after. I am excited to have a job and have something to take up my time now that volleyball is over. I am going through some withdrawals but I am having fun not having to worry about all of that anymore but I do miss the girls from the team and seeing them everyday. The house is nice but there are alot of improvements we will eventually have to do such as the blinds, they are in not so good shape. I am officially in the double digits with weeks of my pregnancy, 1/4 of the way there and way more to go. I am waiting until sunday to find out from women in the ward what doctor is the best to go to. So finally I will be going to the doctor.

Peter has been enjoying work. Things have stayed busy for him so that for him the day goes by fast and he doesn't get bored. He is enjoying it here also and can't wait to get our furniture for the living room that his parents are going to be bringing up sometime in the next couple weeks. For now we are sitting on our futon mattress propped up against some boxes. It is great.

Anyways, that is all for now. Not much else going on except for unpacking which I have been lazy with because of the want to catch up on sleep that I didn't get over the holidays plus the insane tiredness that I have gotten from the pregnancy.

We love you all and hope to have you all someday here at our home in Boise.

Love,
Anne

No ground-breaking news, but thought we should blog a little.
Tracey - glad to hear you are managing well and recovering. I've no doubt you will be your slim, beautiful, active self when we see you again!

Our New Year's was fun. We spent it with Bennetts & Co. We played some serious volleyball - I'm glad I was on Anne's team! :) Then we played some psycho flexibility game - and Anne, Dave and Peter were the champs. Very impressive. It was nice seeing Peter and "that girl with Peter", as Morgan refers to Anne. We really look forward to having them only 6 hours away or so. Now Brent & Buffy are here and we hope to do something fun with them this weekend.

Kids are all great - back to school. I enjoy having them home, but it sure was a long three weeks. We went to Burgerville tonight. Isaac took his "money drop" cash with him and was planning on buying an ice cream sundae with it. The ever-frugal Taylor said, "Are you sure you want to do that? That's like eating $2!" Needless to say, Isaac bought a sundae and Taylor didn't.

Dave now intends to run a marathon in Ogden this spring. He has been training and really wants to do it. Then the Hood to Coast in the summer. We just hope his knees hang in there. Work continues to go well - we are awaiting the delivery of his new sign. Hopefully in February. 2006 should be the year he purchases the practice. Scary, but exciting.

Not much else to report. Hope you are all doing well, getting back into the swing of things after the holidays. Love you all...

Adina

Things here are still going well. Tom is back at school and I am managing fine with the kids on my own (although I am really looking forward to the upcoming visits from my mom and then Barb!!) We had a fun New Year's Eve at the Debaltzo's, there is a picture on their blogg. Tom has jumped right back into the thick of things at school, his description to my inquiry of how his day went was something like "Fine, boring classes in the morning and then off to the clinic." I am recovering well but can't wait until I can say I am "recovered!" I will definately try for a regular delivery with my next child, recovery after having Hayden was really easy and quick. Although I feel pretty good my incistion still hurts if I do any amount of walking like going to the store or too much housework. Fortunately it hasn't even been a month yet so I am still confident I will feel like myself again eventually. Hayden has been living in a dream world with Tom home everyday and woke up yesterday and today asking for him right off. He has mastered a game called Kameo on the 360 as well as his new Leapster LMax games... we're going to have buy him some new games! Danica continues to be a dream baby. There is definately some magic to having a second child because I get to just enjoy her instead of doing all the stressing and worrying that I did with Hayden as a new mom. I could just sit and cuddle with her all day. Fortunately, she is so mild tempered that she would let me just sit and hold her all day while she stared at the wall with a silly grin. But, even more fortunate is the fact that she doesn't require me to hold her all day and is very content to just hangout on her own and easily drifts off to sleep when she's tired. We truly couldn't ask for more.
Well I best go grab the laundry before she wants to eat again. I hope all of your different transitions into 2006 go smoothly, keep us posted!

Tracey

I'm sure it is because different combos of people have been together...but remember those that are not...

Anyway, I am in the midst of chaos here as I put the Christmas stuff away. We've been watching the Orange Bowl tonight as I do it and we are pleased with the final outcome. That poor kicker...actually kickers since both teams missed multiple field goals!!

I finally took Gramma to the podiatrist who said that her sores were healing as well as can be expected with as poor as her circulation is. We go to her regular doctor on Thursday. She still looks puzzled whenever she gets into the chair.

Our life has quieted down considerably with just the three of us here. Brent and Buffy will come over Friday afternoon for the weekend. We're looking forward to that..then next week I'll be going to see Danica...and Hayden, Tracey and Tom.

Love you all...

Mom

Here we are! We have been here for the last four days... Kinda boring. We were supposed to get our stuff from the movers on Friday, but turns out that they got stuck in Ontario, Oregon, so we don't end up getting our stuff until Tuesday. Plus! we don't know where to go to church and we have been trying to find someone in our apartment complex but nobody is home! Not even the manager! Anyway, the drive out here was clear. It rained for the first half and was totally clear the last. AND there was NO snow! It was weird because we had expected tons of snow! But then we woke up the next morning and it was white everywhere! Guess we beat out the weather. School starts on January 9th so this next week will be us getting everything together before we start the full schedule. Treven is working at Bath and Body Works. He worked there in Vancouver for December and it turned out that he could transfer to the one in Idaho Falls. And he gets sweet discounts for me! 30 percent at Bath and Body Works and 20 percent at Victoria's Secret, The Limited, and express. I, on the other hand, are still looking for a job. There are a few places that look good to apply so I am going to go do that on Monday.
Our apartment is wonderful. The kitchen and bathroom are huge and the living room is a little smaller than I expected but it works! Once we get our stuff from the movers and get everything in it's place then we will take some pictures and put them on the blog.
That is all for now from the Burg. By the way, just a thought to keep in mind. Yellowstone is awesome in the summer here (obviously) for camping so if anyone wants to come visit and do some camping it is like an hour away from here!
Love you guys and Happy New Year!
Kim and Treven